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Bibleman is an American Christian media-themed direct-to-video children's series created by Tony Salerno that ran from 1995 to 2010. The series centers around an Evangelicalism superhero who fights evil, often by quoting scripture, and sometimes breaks the fourth wall.
The show had three incarnations: The Bibleman Show, The Bibleman Adventure, and Bibleman: Powersource. The series' titular character was played by Willie Aames from 1995 to 2003 and by Robert T. Schlipp from 2004 to 2010. Originally owned by Pamplin Entertainment, then sold to Tommy Nelson, the series is currently owned by B&H Kids. It was re-launched in CGI format in 2016 (new title Bibleman: The Animated Adventures).
Bibleman was also broadcast on the Australian Christian Channel in Australia.
Coats (played by Marc Wayne): Miles Peterson's best friend and first sidekick, who coaches high school basketball on the side. While Coats didn't have a superhero suit like future sidekicks, he did have a bunch of gadgets and some self-defense training, allowing him to fight off the henchmen of a villain. Coats left the team for reasons classified as stated in "Conquering the Wrath of Rage Live (2000)".
U.N.I.C.E (voiced by Maylo Upton, Jef Scott, and Lisa Kent): (Universal Networking Intelligence Computing Entity) The AI in the BibleCave and Mobile Mission Command Center who gives attitude to Bibleman's sidekick Coats and insists on manners being used even if it wastes time. Strangely, U.N.I.C.E. isn't included in the Animated Adventures.
Kerry "KT" Turner/Cypher (played by Brady Williams and voiced by JJ Gerber in the Animated Adventures): Bibleman's second sidekick. KT originally wore silver armor with black cameo pants and boots, with a headset that had a scope. Later, his suit color was changed to match Bibleman's, with an eye cover added. In, “A Fight For Faith”, KT would remove the headset and eye cover, for yellow strap-on glasses with black lenses. KT originally didn't have a weapon, but would later gain two energy blades that, when put together, can create a forcefield.
Lia MartinIMDB(or Lia Martinez in early appearances) /Biblegirl (played by Tracy Henao, Heather Hazelwood-McSmith, Anayansi Schlipp, and voiced by Nicole Bauman in the Animated Adventures): She first fights with a net, then a gun and then a side shooting weapon. In Powersource she later uses an energy Tonfa. During the beginning of Powersource, Biblegirl was away at Command Central, but returned in Crushing the Conspiracy of the Cheater.
Josh Carpenter/Bibleman (played by Robert T. Schlipp and voiced by Josh Snethlage in the Animated Adventures): The second Bibleman after Miles retires. He is depicted as someone who never understood the Bible until his darkest day (when his parents were arguing) where he read his Bible and accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Josh originally wore the 4th Bibleman suit, until Powersource, where he gained his own suit which returned to the classic purple and yellow color scheme. Just like Miles’, Josh's armor was made up of the Waist Belt of Truth, the Breastplate of Righteousness, the Shoes of Peace, the Shield of Faith and the Helmet of Salvation. Also just like Miles, Josh wields a Laser Sword in battle.
Mel O'Shea/Melody. (played by Lindsay Lewis and voiced by Kylie McCullough in the Animated Adventures) Biblegirl's cousin. She is the only sidekick to have never served alongside Miles Peterson. Her outfit is colored blue and red and uses a laser staff. In the Animated Adventures, her suit colors were changed to match the rest of the team.
Madam Glitz (played by Cindy Phillips): A self-centred woman in Back to School. She captured Miles Peterson (Bibleman) because she wanted the fame Bibleman had. However, Bibleman tells her that it is the Holy Bible that everyone desires and needs to hear. She was placed inside a T.V. set by God.
The Fibbler (played by Bill Murphy and voiced by Peter Jaycock in the Animated Adventures): A green-haired evil clown (resembling the Cesar Romero version of the Joker from the 1960s Batman TV series) who influenced one of the church singing group children to lie. After she asks her friends for forgiveness, The Fibbler and Bibleman fight. The Fibbler was defeated and destroyed by his own sword of darkness. In the animated adventures, the new version of The Fibbler speaks with a Scottish accent, has a green diamond, called the whispering stone. This allows him to control kids and make them lie, even if they don’t want to. The stone also allows Fibbler to create energy weapons; he was also lent the invisibility belt by Dr. Fear.
The Gossip Queen (played by Maylo Upton): A villainess queen whose character design was later widely criticized for sharing many characteristics with traditional Jewish stereotypes (e.g., possessing dark skin, curly black hair, a large hook-nose, thick lips, and dark-colored beady eyes). (2011). 9780521197441, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521197441 She tried to rip the Church singing group apart. She has two henchmen named Loose Lips and Blabbermouth and could fire Beams of Bitterness from her fingers. She was destroyed when she was hit by Bibleman's sword of the Spirit.
Luxor Spawndroth (played by Brian Lemmons and voiced by Rory O'Shea in the Animated Adventures): A villain who takes on different personas after defeat. These incarnations include The Shadow of Doubt, Master of Misery, Dr. Fear, El Furioso, The Prince of Pride, and finally his real name, Luxor Spawndroth. His weapon is the sword of darkness, which is either red or, in a couple of cases, purple. Spawndroth was defeated for good in Lead Us Not Into Temptation. In the animated series, Dr. Fear, Prince of Pride, and the Shadow of Doubt appear as separate incarnations.
Ludicrous (played by Steve Weatherford, Andrew Hicks, Bret Harrison, Les VanValkinburgh, and voiced by Scott Nichol and Cameron Elvin in the Animated Adventures): The evil sidekick of Luxor Spawndroth. From The Fiendish Works of Dr. Fear to Shattering The Prince Of Pride, he was a teenager, but in Breaking The Bonds Of Disobedience and Lead Us Not Into Temptation, he was played by a heavy set man. In Lead Us Not Into Temptation, he was defeated for good by Cypher.
L.U.C.I. (voiced by Maylo Upton, Jef Scott, and Lisa Kent): (The Link to Underhanded Computer Influences) is the evil counterpart to U.N.I.C.E and computer to all the villains starting with Dr. Fear. Just like U.N.I.C.E., L.U.C.I. isn't included in the Animated Adventures.
Primordius Drool (played by Jef Scott): is a green-skinned demon with great powers including wielding lightning who, later in the series, is punished, becoming 'The Wacky Protestor'.
Rapscallion Polite Sinister (played by Kevin McSmith): was the villain fought by Bibleman in the 2005 live show, hired by the Wacky Protestor to take out the source of Bibleman's power. He was defeated when placed inside a cage that sucked out his power.
Professor E. Meritus Snortinskoff (played by Steve Sandfort): A mad scientist who's in charge of Snortinskoff Industries and makes kids disrespect their authorities. His henchman is Stench.
Stench (played by Henry Haggard): This character is a henchmen of Professor E. Meritus Snortinskoff.
2Kul 4Skul (played by Jeff Durham): A gray-skinned villain who devised a plan to establish a T.V. station with the call letters W.B.I.G. (which stand for What's Bad is Good) to block the gospel from reaching the youth.
I.M. Wonderful (played by Amber Liabenow and Lisa Kent): A vain woman who wears a gold mask and a cape.
The Whiner Brothers (played by Rick Burgess and Bubba Bussey, and voiced by David Andrew Brent and Peter Jaycock in the Animated Adventures): Two villains who use a radio station broadcast to make children whine and complain.
The Cheater (played by Peter Vann): Best among super villains. His tools are his "belittler," his flying cards, land mines, and a bouncy house gladiator club. If one is unlucky enough to get him angry, The Cheater will unplug his/her surge protector.
The Slacker (played by Josh Childs and voiced by Cameron Elvin in the Animated Adventures): This senior villain makes kids lazy with his Lasers of Laziness. He carries a staff (laser of laziness) and goons to support him in battle. He can also teleport and possesses clairvoyance.
Super Pro Gamemaster 2 (played by Henry Haggard): This villain was a cyborg who could control machines. He appeared in "Lambasting the Legions of Laziness".
Super Pro Gamemaster 3 (played by Eric Pasto-Crosby): This robotic leader of the Evildoers Club was Super Pro Gamemaster 2's successor. He has powers similar to his predecessor and developed the video game Big Bad Bully.
Baron Ulysses Tantamont von Braggart (played by Clarck Leach): A sheriff-like pig villain with a golden head cap who lives in a castle. His weapons are his electric staff that he uses to battle Bibleman, and his electric chair that he uses to shoot at Bibleman and Cypher.
The Commandant of Confusion (played by Dean Guthrie) A gold-skinned heavyweight villain who is very technical and has an evil sidekick named Chaos, who is dressed up in a black and red jumpsuit.
Chaos (played by Joey Febres) A Henchman in a black and red suit and mask, who is said to have worked with many villains, but is only seen with The Commandant of Confusion.
The Sultan of Selfishness (voiced by Peter-Mark Raphael) An olive-skinned man with black, curly hair, black eyebrows and eyes, a black goatee, and a green Nehru jacket with gold trimmings. He temporarily gains control of a school by posing as a motivational speaker who dispenses small stickers that cause all the students and faculty to become susceptible to the Sultan's 3Ds credo: Demand, Deserve, Dominate.
The Baroness: A female villain who gets her powers from a green crystal on her cane. Called the Conflict Crystal, whoever looks at, or is touched by it, is induced to begin arguing with those around them. The crystal then absorbs the energy from the conflict to recharge its power. However, the crystal will lose its power if there's no arguing for it to recharge itself with.
The Crusher is a villain wanting to spread violence. He has two henchmen and super strength.
The Grand Duchess of Greed: also known as Gwyneth Reed or simply the Grand Duchess is a villain who can infect people with her glitter kisses. When she blows a kiss onto an object or person, it can infect the person with greed (in the case of Lila) or disrespect (in her second appearance).
The Mayor of Maybe: a villain who makes kids doubt and question their faith in God. He accomplishes this through the use of bubblegum, but gets trapped in it himself and is seen floating away.
The Ronin of Wrong is a villain who wants to spread wrong doing. He wears a helmet that is "two sizes too small".
In 1998, sales made up less than one percent of the Christian children's video market. Three years later, sales climbed to eleven percent of that market. It held third place behind first place VeggieTales and second place 3-2-1 Penguins! which were both produced by Big Idea Entertainment. The Dove Foundation gave the series its "Family-Approved" seal for "this energetic battle against evil."
However, several adults have criticized the show's fight scenes as promoting violence, despite the fact, one show ("Conquering The Wrath Of Rage"), and its live counterpart, addressed the violence issue.
Of Bibleman, Marc Peyser of Newsweek writes,
The live show has been described as falling between "a high budget Sunday school pageant, a Batman movie, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to even Power Rangers in how it comes across." The production borrows heavily from popular culture, including films, popular music and video games.
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